


Beckoning

by arexasaurusrwar



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Awesome Leia Organa, Ben Solo Needs A Hug, F/M, Force Bond (Star Wars), Knights of Ren - Freeform, Kylo Ren Redemption, Post-Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Rey Needs A Hug, Star Wars: The Last Jedi Spoilers, The Force Ships It
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-31
Updated: 2018-01-31
Packaged: 2019-03-11 08:11:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,555
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13520172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arexasaurusrwar/pseuds/arexasaurusrwar
Summary: The Bond is annoying.Until it's not.





	Beckoning

**Author's Note:**

> The Last Jedi was great, but this unbeta'd fic crawled out and decided it needed a place in the world.

“Hello.”

 

She didn’t open her eyes when she sensed his presence coming, only choosing to frown when she heard him speak. She refused to engage the man, even though this was the first time since Crait that he had appeared through their connection. Refocusing on her meditation, she collected all the peace she could.

 

“I know you don’t understand my choice. You saw me in the light, but I saw you in the dark.”

 

She took a deep breath, trying to keep her cool. Her anger was always magnified when he came around. She constantly ended up exploding at him. She couldn’t stop their bond, but she could ignore it. 

 

“You were glorious, and we were together. That’s why you came, wasn’t it? Or was I mistaken, and you wanted to kill me again? Is that why you pulled for the saber? To strike me down?”

 

Rey’s calm failed as she detonated. Using the force to push her out of her sitting position and onto her feet, she spun at him, fist in the air. He sidestepped and dodged her attack, recognizing her movement before she even knew what she was aiming for.

 

“There you are.”

 

Grateful that she was in a far-off room where no one was around to wonder who she was yelling at, Rey screamed in his face. “I thought you understood me. I could feel how lonely you were too. But things are different now, I'm not nothing anymore!” She swung at him again, and this time he caught her fist. She cracked, “But you didn’t pick me, and you made me feel like _nothing_.”

 

Ben moved to talk, but she pushed back, and he was gone. Rey sighed, her anger depleting as she watched the moon circle the planet before heading back into the busier part of the base. 

 

* * *

 

With a blink, Rey found herself looking directly into Ben's eyes. He was standing in front of her, a few feet from falling into the ship’s hyperdrive, saber drawn and breathing hard. Rey tilted her head and couldn't help her curiosity as she asked, "Are you okay?"

 

Finn raised an eyebrow, “Of course I am. Are you?” At his answer, the young Jedi flushed as she remembered that her new friends couldn’t see who she was talking to. She ignored his question so that her attention was on Ben, keeping his presence in her mind.

 

There was no way she was going to let the connection go before she got her answer, especially since she hadn’t seen him yet today. She could feel Ben shutting her out, but she also felt the cut on his leg and his exhaustion, so she fought him.

 

"Some people aren't happy that I'm the new Supreme Leader." Ben finally responded once he realized that she wasn't going anywhere. His eyes were glancing off to the side of Rose, where the girl sitting in the third holding room of the Falcon. He spun to the right, starting to fight an enemy that Rey couldn't see.

 

She winced as she watched Ben's saber go through a chair, but it wasn't real, the saber wasn't here, and neither was he. Unfortunately, his grunt of pain was very real. Rey bit her tongue to keep herself from reacting to his injury and scaring the others in the room with her.

 

Finn snapped his fingers in front of her face, "Is this a weird Jedi thing?" Rose looked interested immediately, then even Poe perked up. Without connections to the force themselves, Rey found everyone always wanted to know what she was feeling. It was unnerving to say the least. She wasn't used to all the attention, which subsequently made her uncomfortable.

 

As she explained that it was a weird Jedi thing, Ben spoke over her. "You could just tell them to kriff off." Ben could feel her emotions on the situation, knew that she didn’t have the words to explain their bond but didn’t want to lie. "You're projecting your thoughts rather loudly." His saber flashed out of view as he let go of it, and then reappeared seconds later in the other hand.

 

She rolled her eyes at his response but decided to ignore him again. “The force is weird, Finn. I can’t explain what this is or why it happens.” She flinched when she saw the saber arching over her head. _Watch it,_ she hissed through her thoughts, trying to push her anger into him as well. She set her tools down, not wanting to work on the Falcon while distracted by him.

 

Ben grinned wildly, his attention split between her and the battle. She was lovely when she was angry, and it being directed at him was just funny. He knew she could fight like the best of them, but it still seemed like an angry Ewok.

 

Rey wasn’t the only one protecting her thoughts.

 

Hearing his comparison, she searched his mind for an Ewok. When she got her answer, Rey was offended and decided that screaming into his mind in retaliation was a good idea.

 

Unfortunately, her plan backfired onto herself. She gasped at the sudden migraine and wished that Luke hadn't vanished into the force. She needed help, but the connection severed immediately so it wasn't all bad.

 

Finn knelt in front of her, concern written all over his face. "It's nothing, Finn," Rey finally let out when the pain had subsided. Her friend still made her stop working on the Falcon for today. 

 

* * *

 

The one good thing that had come from leaving the New Jedi Order were his fellow Knights. When he had been Ben Solo, the other Padawans always made fun of him. Since Luke had always seen the darkside in Ben, he had been the strictest on his nephew. Anything the young boy did wrong was ridiculed.

  
Luke’s attitude transferred to his students, who often bullied Ben.

 

Then they joined together under Ben, and everything was different. They feared him, listened under the fear of his power and bonded through their massacre. Unfortunately, following the attack on Taunul, the Knights had split.

 

A few banded together, leaving together once Kylo went on his mission, too afraid of Kylo’s attachment to the First Order. The others fled alone, scared that Snoke would order Kylo to kill them.

 

Since becoming Supreme Leader, Ben wanted his friends back. It was easy enough to find Rogue, Monk and Sniper. They never left each other’s side, having bonded early in shared experience of growing up in the Outer Rim. Dantooine was only the second planet he checked, only making sure Sula didn’t go back to her Clan on Mandalore first.

 

Ben used the force to pry open his friends’ ship, casually walking on board. He had left his saber in his own ship, not wanting to scare them away. He was also undercover, which meant no intimidating outfit or mask.

 

He was just Ben, which also meant he did his best to mock _everyone_. “Hey Miko, what’s up? Where are Sula and Kress?” He sat down across from the sage older man and raised an eyebrow.

 

Miko, for his part, just raised an eyebrow, “Hey _Ben_ , what the _kriff_ are you doing here?” He had always been the most peaceful out of all of them and wasn’t fazed by Ben’s appearance. Miko had much skill in foresight, so there was a chance that he already knew this would happen.

 

Ben heard a click behind him, something touched the back of his head, but then Rey was standing across the room, staff pointed up as if to attack. “Why is there a blaster on your head?” She couldn’t see the person holding it, but she wanted to hit them in the head.

 

Kress was behind him, then. Ben used the force to throw the blaster out of his friend’s hand. “I know you like your blasters, Kree, but I’m not here for a fight.” He could tell that this was distracting Rey, who seemed preoccupied, which frustrated him. This bond wasn’t always a good thing.

 

“I heard you’re the new Supreme Leader, here to choose your next apprentice?” Miko questioned from his seat at the table. Ben met Sula’s eyes when he turned to look at Kress. He smiled at the girl, who only glared suspiciously.

 

Ben supposed he couldn’t blame his fellow Knight for his assumption, but felt Rey fall to the ground after taking a hit to her spine, and grimaced. His attention was pulled away from Miko’s question. “Who is attacking you?” He asked Rey, throwing his energy into her. He had to ignore what was happening in his own surroundings to help her.

 

After a minute, Sula sprang forward when she saw Ben starting to sweat. She grabbed his shoulder and suddenly saw a desert rat throwing her staff around the room. Sula raised an eyebrow, “You found yourself a girlfriend? I’m impressed, Benobi.”

 

Ben rolled his eyes at the old nickname, watching Rey move. Her presence always calmed him, and he hadn’t been angry before. Sula’s torments wouldn’t phase him. Rey glanced at the pair and her heart fell into her stomach. When he felt her distress, Ben quickly explained, “Rey, this is Rouge. She’s from the Knights.”

 

Rey made a noise, just to let him know she understood, refocusing on her battle. Ben nodded when her distress faded away. Sula looked to her boys, “He _does_ have a girlfriend!” The younger girl giggled, “This is amazing. She’s a _lightsider_.”

 

Kress holstered his blaster and sat down next to Miko, throwing his arm around the man. “Alright, now this I have to hear about.” There was no way that Kylo Ren was dating a lightsider, especially not after becoming the Supreme Leader. He needed to know this story.

 

Sula started streaming questions at Rey, who answered what she could as she fought off unseen enemies. Ben tried to ignore the girls as he explained to Kress and Miko what had actually happened to Snoke and Luke. He would wait to tell him why he was there until Rey left.

 

Rey laughed at something Sula had said and Ben focused back on their conversation. “Leia only visited that once, mind you, but she was the _best_. I wanted to be just like her when I was a kid.” She snorted, “Luke was annoying as all _kriff_. Vague answers, disappointment when we couldn’t control our emotions. I was _eleven_ when we left Luke’s. I don’t have Beni’s anger issues, but I’m not about to bottle up what I feel, you know?”

 

The desert rat looked conflicted, but then her presence faded from the room and she couldn’t respond to Sula. Ben’s energy came back to him in full, and he set _I hope you’re okay_ through the bond.

 

Sula sat down on Kress’ lap and Miko’s hand went to her leg. “Now that the lightsider is gone, want to tell me why you’re really here?” Sula asked, hand on the saber at her waist.

 

* * *

  

Rey saw a flash of black out of the corner of her eye, but when she looked to see if Ben was there, the room was empty.

 

She tried to hide her disappointment.

 

She failed.

 

* * *

 

"Here I am, trying to sleep, and you just appear. This is improper. Also get out of my bed!" She pushed him off, smirking when she heard him crash on the floor.

 

Even though she didn't know which system he was in, it seemed that they were on the same time cycle. His state of undress gave off signs of sleep, and since she knew he fell onto the ground, he had also been in bed.

 

Ben's hair was a mess, and she could see the sweat glean off his back. When he finally sat up from the ship’s floor, he had to put his head between his legs and calm his breathing. Usually, he tried to talk to Rey when they linked through the force. This time was different, and all Rey could feel was his pain.

 

Rey frowned, crawling towards him on her knees. “Ben?” She asked, touching his shoulder. In that instant, she found herself in his nightmares.

 

_There was darkness. Complete darkness. Snoke’s voice filled her head, promises of total power and real teaching. She sees green light fill her room, turning just in time to watch Luke raise his saber above her teenage body._

 

_As she screams, the environment changes to Han falling off the bridge. This time, when Chewbacca's shot hits, she’s falling off bridge herself. Han’s body is below her, but she can’t reach him, can’t save him. She can’t even save herself._

 

_The ship’s interior is covered by Leia’s face. Rey reaches out, but the face shifts into her own. She could feel the hate radiating out of her copy, and the fear and loneliness coming from inside herself. She stops midair as someone catches her body._

_When she twists out of the hold, she's on Crait, in Luke's place when Ben shot the guns. Instead of AT-ATs and fighters, it's Ben’s family and padawans. She’s solid, so the shots go hit and the pain is just as bad as if it were real. She’s on her knees, and even though the soil is red, she knows it’s covered in her blood._

 

Rey gasped when she felt something physical again: Ben's hand covering her own. His touch brought her out of his mind and back into her surroundings.

 

"I didn't mean to show you that." He hated himself for sending her into that hellscape. "It's not pleasant." She snorted at this and wrapped her arms around her midsection. She could still feel the phantom blaster shots.

 

“Sula said that everyone made fun of you for your nightmares.” Rey murmured, taking his hand and lacing their fingers together. “But that was _terrifying_.” If Luke had seen anything like that in his mind, how had it thought of attacking? Ben had just been a scared little boy with a madman poisoning his thoughts.  

 

He heaved a sigh as he softly stroked his thumb over her knuckles. “I can’t tell you what Luke was thinking that night.” Thinking about it usually made him angry, but her presence at his side let him explain without wanting to hack up the closest machine. “I overheard how my family thought I was too much like my grandfather. I never understood why that was a bad thing, since Anakin Skywalker was a hero. He was the hero with no fear.” He turned away from Rey, “One fear. His wife’s death. It’s why he turned darkside, he was promised the ability to save her. The Jedi Order would never let them be together, since it was an attachment. I never understood why the Jedi didn’t allow love, but it was something my family stuck to.”

 

Rey’s eyebrows knitted together, “But Han and Leia loved each other.” She had seen it. She had _felt_ Leia’s grief at her husband’s death. “Han loved you too, it’s why he didn’t fight you.” She paused, “And I think, even after Crait, I think that Leia still loves you. She just doesn’t want to admit it.”

 

“Their love wasn’t enough to cover their fear.” Ben explained, and Rey felt his childhood feelings of abandonment as if they were her own. They _felt_ like her own. He hadn’t want to be left with Luke just as much as she hadn’t wanted to be sold to Plutt. “You were sold to your master, but my parents just gave me away to mine.”

 

Ben finally met her eyes again when she pulled at his hand, "Come on." He crawled onto her mattress, which much too small for two people. Rey had been surprised by this fact, since she was sure Han would have wanted a giant bed on the ship.

  
  
His arms went around her waist after he laid her on his chest. Rey curled her legs while he was sprawled out beneath her, and she used his pecks for a pillow. It should've been uncomfortable, but it was a nice change from the too-soft beds. "Is this okay?"

 

"Yeah, it's okay."

 

Rey knew that she should kick him out of her mind. Or that the whole situation should’ve been unbearable. She didn’t understand why she could practically cuddle with him without it mattering.

  
  
“Because it’s always going to be you and me, Rey.” Ben muttered, half asleep, “I promise.” For some reason, Rey believed him. He tightened his grip around her in an awkward attempt at what she assumed was a hug.

 

“You’re projecting again.” Ben huffed, letting her go. Rey punched his pectoral muscle as a response. She grabbed his arm and wrapped it around her waist again, finally shutting off her thoughts and finding sleep.

 

Rey would deny the night even happened in the morning.

 

* * *

  

The next time Ben appears, Rey can’t help but let out a very undignified screeching noise that could rival that of an animal’s. Because Ben is naked.

 

Not only is he naked, but he's in her lap. Having the First Order Leader appear  _at all_ was bad, she had learned to deal with his lack of a shirt, _but this?_  This was too much.

 

Before Ben could even say a word, he was gone. It wouldn't have really been a problem, had she been in the Falcon like she was supposed to be. She had expected Ben to show up soon, since he hadn’t appeared since the night before.

 

But Leia had called her into a meeting, and Rey wasn’t in the position to refuse the woman. They connected at the same time Ben had apparently gone into the bath, so now she was drenched in water. In front of the General of the Resistance. It also didn’t help that the office couch was soaked, as were Rey’s clothes.

 

Had she not already been committed to ending the First Order and killing the Supreme Leader, her resolve to kill the man had just settled in. This was entirely his fault _and it had happened in front of Leia_.

  
  
Leia, who was force sensitive and who could’ve seen Ben when they touched.

 

Leia, who was probably wondering why her very naked son just appeared in her newest soldier’s lap.

 

Leia, who was currently giving Rey her best ‘ _explain how and what the kriff just happened and it better be good’_ glare.

 

Rey pulls out into the force and tries to bring Ben back, because this is his mother and the connection was his fault so really, he should have to explain everything. Ben, however, did not currently want to be called, did not wish to deal with his mother, and fought the connection for the first time. Ever.

 

Figures that he would only reject her when she wanted to see him.

  
Luckily enough for her, the Force sees her side and Ben is suddenly in view again, this time in a towel. “I can’t bathe in peace, and now I can’t dress in peace?!" He glanced at his mother, wondering why she had appeared in his ‘fresher as well, but his focus stayed on Rey. "Unless you want assistance."

 

“ _Yes_ , you laser brain, I need your help! How am I supposed to explain this?!" Rey scowled, but the General cut off Ben’s before the Supreme Leader could answer. Had he not just been naked on her lap, Rey would laugh about how scared Ben seemed of Leia’s wrath.

 

The elder woman cocked an eyebrow, "I was wondering how you would explain my naked son on your lap too, but apparently this is some Force nonsense that I don't think I want to know about." Leia grinned as she watched her son’s face flush with color.

 

She hadn’t seen him since he was a teenager, and now he was quite tall but still just as easy to embarrass. Leia _did_ want to know how Ben had shown up, but there was no reason not to talk to him before the weird force thing ended.

 

"General I'm so—"

 

"Don't apologize to her, it's not like you asked for this connection."

 

"Of course, I'm going to—"

 

“Just because she is a Queen doesn’t mean you have to listen to her.”

 

“She’s _my_   General!”

 

“Well she’s my mother.”

 

“Which is why you should apologize to her!”

 

“I’m not going to.”

 

“That doesn’t mean you can stop me from—"

 

"It’s not as if I can see where you are, you’re not doing anything evil by talking to me. The bond isn’t evil."

 

" _Yes_ , _it is,_ a darksider created the bond—"

 

"If Snoke created the bond, then it would've died with him. You did it."

 

"I don't even know how to create a bond!"

 

"Not understanding how you did something hasn’t stopped you before."

 

"Okay, now I want you to leave."

 

"Too bad, I'm invested now.”

 

Rey huffed, "Fine, but you have to actually help." He leaned back against his 'fresher wall and watched Rey's expressions. “Well?”

 

Leia held up a hand, and it seemed like she was trying not to laugh, "Just because you two have some sort of bond doesn't negate the fact that I'm also force-sensitive and Ben's mother. I'm fully able to see you." She turned to her son, who met her eyes with disbelief. "I'm more powerful than you think."

 

Rey launched into an apology, but Leia silenced the younger girl with her hand once again. "It doesn't seem like you mind this bond too much, but if he ever gets too much, I will find what I can to stop it." Leia looked towards her son, “You better be remembering your manners. I did not raise you to mistreat women, and Rey is one of the best. If I hear of any use of this connection to manipulate her, I will do everything in my power to stop you.”

 

Ben moped, "I'm the perfect gentlemen, she's the one who tries to kill me all the time." He pointed to his scar specifically. Then he thinks of the times she tried shooting him and punching him.

 

Rey groaned as she realized what he was thinking about. She tried not to be embarrassed by her own uncontrollable anger, "Please feel free to ignore him."

 

"That was usually the problem," Ben cut in with an insult to his mother, trying to seem uncaring and suave. It looked more like a toddler struggling to look cool.

 

Leia did her best not to let his comment hurt her, instead choosing to roll her eyes, "I was right. You're much too like Anakin." She turned her focus onto Rey, "Remember what I said." The younger woman nodded, and the General left the two to their own devices, calling behind her, “Behave, Ben!”

 

Rey let out a breath she hadn’t been aware she had been holding in when the General left the two, no longer wanting to be a part of their time together. Rey closed her eyes, “Your mom scares me.”

 

Ben laughed, “Yeah. She scares me too.” He didn’t understand why his mother was so okay with the bond though. He was expecting to go rescue Rey from the Resistance when everything came out. It’s not as if having the enemy in your head was a good thing.

 

"That went better than expected." Rey pointed out with a slight grin. Had the General been angry or disappointed, her heart would’ve broken. Pissing off Luke, she dealt with well. Leia was a different story.

 

"Yes, it did," Ben sounded curious and confused, but his eyes were on his mother’s office window. When Rey reopened her eyes, he had vanished once again.    
  
 

* * *

  
  
Outside the room, once she was far enough down the hall, Leia let out loud laughter. She couldn’t help it. Ben had grown into a taller, darker version of the young force ghost of her father without even knowing it. He was snarky and lost in love for a brunette with a pretty smile.  

 

Leia’s laughter grew worse when she realized that Rey had gotten herself into a relationship that rivaled her own with Han. The pair were insanely like how she and Han had been on Hoth. Leia did hope Finn wasn’t dragged into it like Luke had been.

 

When she got back into the control room, she still had not stopped laughing. Her staff were a bit concerned, but only Poe was brave enough to ask what was so funny. Leia just waved him off, laughing to herself.

 

Her eyes connected with a cloaked blue figure, hazardously sat in the pilot’s chair. The two shared a slight smile before the man vanished, and Leia’s laughter had shifted into bittersweet love.

 

* * *

 

Although the times they connected were mostly random in length, they hadn't gone more than two days without seeing each other. Sometimes it was just a shadow in the corner of the eye, and others they were together for over an hour.

 

Which is why not hearing from Ben for a _week_ was concerning.

 

Not even projecting her thoughts or trying to pull him towards her was working. In fact, she couldn't even feel his usual presence in the back of her mind.

 

He was just _gone_.

 

As soon as the base’s alarms went off, she knew what had happened. They were in the ancient Kashyyyk System’s Rebel Outpost. There’s no one who would even think about checking here. Not unless they had a reason.

 

Rey wracked her brain, trying to remember if she had accidently dropped a hint on where she was. She thought of the closest planet’s green moon shining on her face, or the large open windows where she constantly stared out towards the stars.

 

Ben would recognize his godfather’s system. There’s not a chance in the galaxy that he hadn’t been in this system before. He wasn’t stupid, and he grew up on Rebellion stories. He knew where the old bases were.

 

Rey’s heart sank into her stomach at Ben’s betrayal and unease set in as she questioned why Leia would keep taking them to these stations. That’s when Poe almost knocked her over.

 

“Where did the alarm get set off?” She asked the elder pilot, hoping that he had more information than just the alarms blaring around them. Poe didn’t answer, just turned towards the hanger bay, which prompted Rey to follow him. Poe always rushed into the battle, no mind of himself. He wanted to protect.

 

There was a barricade of soldiers around a First Order ship, but Rey’s mind zeroed in and the bond opened for the first time in days. She found herself looking directly at Ben, but this time she saw his surroundings. “You might be safer in here.” She grinned, not caring about where she was or how it looked to the people around her.

 

“I’m sure you’ll protect me.”

 

“Who says I won’t shoot you myself? Why would I protect the Supreme Leader?” She whispered, just to make sure that he was there for the right reasons.

 

“I was hoping you would protect Ben Solo, killer of Snoke and destroyer of the First Order.”

 

“Did you end it, then?” Rey cocked an eyebrow, almost impressed at the implication his presence made.

 

“I decided against more killing, but I wrecked most of their ships, deleted all the data and took most of their money.”

 

“Well that’s some scam.” Rey snorted, sorting out how the First Order would be destroyed without their funds. They could always get more, but not without power. Ben had taken their power when he left.

 

“I didn’t want to go with you, at first. Then someone decided to knock some sense into me.”

 

“Leia?”

 

“Anakin Skywalker. According to him, the darkside isn’t all it cracked up to be.”

 

“If you’re Anakin, am I Padmé in this situation? Because I never agreed to that.”

 

“I’m sure I’ll win you over.”

 

Rey was going to respond, but she was pulled into her actual environment by Leia. “Is it Ben?” The elder woman asked, worry caked into her usually stoic expression. Rey tried to project calm towards her, not even noticing when everyone around her lowered their blasters. The General nodded and went up to the ship, “Come out!” Rey joined her, standing tall next to her, hand clutching her staff just in case.

 

Ben listened to his mother, and as soon as he was close enough, he gave a datapad to Leia and his saber to Rey. “I’m defecting to the Resistance, although I think you’ll find that the First Order is practically defeated. That,” He pointed to the datapad in his mother’s hands, “Has all the Stormtrooper’s information, where all the secret bases are, layouts to ships, what have you.”

 

Leia nodded, “I see.” She looked at the saber in Rey’s hands and cocked an eyebrow at her son, “Will I need to get out the lizards or will you behave?”

 

“I was the Supreme Leader. If I wanted to destroy you, I would’ve come here with my fleet, not tear my ships into pieces and willingly giving up my only weapon.” Ben pointed out before turning his attention to the scavenger girl, “New offer. You, me, old Jedi temple and an open invitation to those with the force.”

 

“But not a new Jedi Order,” Rey continued his thoughts, easily slipping into his mind and seeing his idea. “Something else, something better.” She looked back at his stolen ship, “We’re taking the Falcon.”

 

Ben nodded and further explained, “It wouldn’t just be us. Miko, Kress and Sula are out searching for Force-sensitives now. They’ll meet us on Ilum.” He glanced at his mother, “I’m not going to jail. I killed Snoke, gave away trade secrets, and left your enemy in shambles. I left the light because I was afraid of death. Don’t make me leave again.” Rey suddenly felt desperate at the thought of him leaving and grabbed his hand to pull him into her side. Ben couldn’t hide his smile as he looked down at her.

 

She decided he had a nice smile.

 

Leia huffed, turning their attention back to her, and she was obviously offended at the accusation. “I know I sent Luke after you, but unlike you, I _could_ tell he wasn’t actually on Crait. I’m not going to lose any more of my family. Most people don’t even know your real name. You were held prisoner by the First Order until managing to defeat Kylo Ren, now you’re back.” She squeezed his shoulder, “And I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

 

Ben raised an eyebrow, “Did you not hear the part where we’re leaving?”

 

“Yes well, you need dinner first.” Leia smirked, turning and addressing the rest of the Resistance. Ben and Rey quickly took their leave, the former letting his scavenger girl lead him through the base. They picked up strays on the way to Leia’s rooms.

 

The first was Chewbacca. He didn’t shoot first, asking Rey what the man was doing on the base. As Rey explained, the Wookiee debated to himself on whether to shoot Kylo or not. Rey did her best to calm him down, and by the time the group found Finn and Rose, Chewie was feeling much less murderous.

 

Finn, being the only other one on the base who knew Kylo Ren’s face, was another story. It had almost been a bloodbath, and Rey was lucky that Poe had intervened by saying, “Oh that’s just Ben. He’s relatively harmless.” Poe grinned at his old friend, “You grew into your ears. I’m glad you’re not dead.”

 

Ben grimaced at Poe’s inconsolable expression when Finn explained who this _really_ was. Rey had to cut in and explain why he was on the base, which surprised Finn just as much as it did Poe. Rey, herself, was staggered by the fact that Poe didn’t attack Ben, but she was thankful for the lack of anger. The older pilot decided against joining them for dinner but promised to visit when the First Order was fully taken care of.

 

Rose and Finn went after him as Poe went to sort out his life.

 

Leia came back with R2D2 and C-3PO. Ben was excited to see his old friends, even if R2 ran into him for making Luke disappear. The droid had used different words, but Rey figured that anyone from the Outer Rim would know that kind of language.

 

Rey was smiling throughout the entire dinner. The connection flickered enough to the point where she wasn’t sure of where her emotions ended and his began. They were both _happy_ , and that’s all that mattered.

 

It took hours for Leia to let the pair leave. Chewie decided against going with them, not wanting to leave Leia. Much to Ben’s chagrin, C-3PO and R2D2 wanted to tag along to Ilum.

 

“I’ll come see your progress when the First Order is fully quashed.” Leia brought her hand to her son’s face, who had to bend down to allow the gesture. Ben didn’t let her choice bother him, she had been raised to put the Galaxy above everything.

 

When he turned away from her, he saw Rey at the door with her hand extended towards him. “So we’re leaving now?”

 

“I think I’ve made you wait long enough.” Rey’s smile was blinding when he took her hand.

 


End file.
